The Mobile Barbershop Inside a Ford Transit® Van
Sep 26, 2023 | 3 min read
When Will Gilliard needed a vehicle to take his barbershop on the road, he fell in love with a Ford Transit van.
He saw a canvas for creativity, as many people do with the van’s ample room for customization. The 2023 Ford Transit van offers a wide variety of configuration options—from roof height to van length and more. Customers have turned to Ford Transit vans for all sorts of creative endeavors—from adventure vans to mobile barber shops. It’s no wonder why Ford Transit is America’s best-selling full-size commercial van.1034
For Will Gilliard, the decision to purchase a Ford Transit was a no-brainer. “It had my name written all over it,” he said.
Gilliard has been a barber in New Jersey for nearly 30 years. Born and raised in Jersey City, he started cutting hair around his community as a young man. He built up his skills by practicing on kids in the neighborhood as he envisioned a path from the Jersey streets to a brighter future.
“I didn’t want to get into trouble, go to jail or end up somewhere worse,” he said. “So, I started focusing on cutting hair. Eventually, I opened a shop in Jersey.”
For years, Gilliard made a career of owning and running barbershops—and then the coronavirus hit, and he closed his shop doors for good. Fortunately, he’d been prepping his next big move for a while.
Enter Chess Moves—the mobile barbershop Gilliard has been running out of a Ford Transit van since 2020.
A Cut Above the Rest in a Ford Transit Van
During the pandemic, Gilliard’s customers were eager for him to reopen his shop. Continuing business at his brick-and-mortar location wasn’t part of the plan, but he wouldn’t leave his customers hanging.
Gilliard decked out his Ford Transit van with classic barbershop décor and extra batteries to power lights and TVs to ensure his customers would feel as comfortable as possible in the chair. A small replica of his old shop, it even smells like a barbershop, and his customers were happy to have a new place to see Gilliard. He started with his regulars, welcoming them back to an innovative barber experience. And the word spread from there.
Will Gilliard transformed his Ford Transit van into a mobile barbershop in New Jersey.
“As I drove around and parked at different locations, the van got people’s attention,” Gilliard said. “It looks like a spaceship at night with all the lights! And I let people look inside, record and take pictures. It became the talk of the day.”
The Intimate Art of Cutting Hair in a Mobile Barbershop
Business took off from there and has been booming ever since. Without a brick-and-mortar shop, Gilliard has been able to simplify operations on-the-go. He says people love the convenience of it, but he believes it’s more than that. He’s created a mobile sense of community.
“A lot of people come in who don’t even need a haircut,” he said. “They just love the idea that I can take it out anywhere and create the whole barbershop vibe wherever I go.”
That “barbershop vibe” is what it’s all about for Gilliard. It’s bigger than cutting hair. It’s even bigger than cutting hair on wheels. It’s a place where people go to talk, to be heard, to find guidance and camaraderie. For example, Gilliard says there are kids who came to him for haircuts at his shop years ago and return from all over the world as adults.
“They’re out there doing big things now,” Gilliard said. “And a lot of them tell me that if it weren’t for me cutting their hair from a young age, they wouldn’t be who they are today.”
Gilliard is happy to be able to expand that influence even further with the van.
“The van gets kids’ attention, and then I can share my real message,” he said. After hearing so many stories from his customers over the years, he’s realized a lot of people are frustrated. “I let them speak from their souls,” he said. And once they speak their problems into existence, he encourages them to find solutions. “It’s all about progress. I tell kids that the next time I stop at their corner, I don’t want to hear about the same old problems. I want to see some progress.”
Changing the world one cut at a time. That’s Gilliard’s motto.
“I want people to know this business is nowhere near about me,” he said.
Chess Moves is more than a really cool van and a compassionate barber. It’s a vehicle of inspiration—literally.
Need a van to help bring your dreams to life? Choose the Ford Transit van that fits your needs.
Disclosure(s)
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Based on total U.S. reported sales (2022 CY).